In the Seattle Times, Joseph O’Sullivan writes about the prospects for a special session of the Legislature this year:

Talk in recent weeks had focused around Inslee calling lawmakers back for a session in August. But House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan, D-Covington, said Thursday lawmakers would not return this summer.

Both Sullivan and Inslee suggested the state may not ultimately need to return until lawmakers gather in January for their regularly scheduled session.

Inslee said Washington has enough funding in its current, two-year state operating budget to function until lawmakers return in January.

It may be technically possible to wait until January to adjust the budget, but the longer the Legislature waits, the harder it will be. Budget cuts would have to be deeper since they would be made over a shorter period. And this assumes that revenue estimates won’t be revised downward again.

Contra Gov. Inslee and Rep. Sullivan,

[Senate Majority Leader Andy] Billig said he informed Senate Democrats last week that a session “was looking less likely for August.”

But, “I think we will have a special session, and I think we just won’t know yet when it will be,” said Billig.

Billig cautioned that the work to reshape the budget is so substantial that it equates to the monthslong budget process usually seen in Olympia.

The governor has taken several actions to improve the balance sheet: He vetoed some of the spending in the 2020 supplemental, implemented a freeze of hiring and some purchases, cancelled some employee raises, and required furloughs for agencies under his control.

Other agencies have followed suit:

• The state Senate suspended a 2.5 percent salary increase for all employees and the House froze salaries.
• The Department of Natural Resources will furlough some non-critical employees for eight days through November and suspend the 3 percent salary increase.
• The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction planned to be closed due to furloughs July 2, 6, 13, and 20.
• Central Washington University will furlough some employees in July and August.

But these actions will not be sufficient to address the revenue shortfall.